Insects + Spiders Unit: Bug rescue bin

Help! These friendly bugs have gotten trapped in a spider web, and they need your child to help them get free. (Plus, this fun, play-based activity helps your child work on fine motor skills and hand strength they’ll need for writing later on. 😉)

What you need:
What to do:

Start by dyeing your rice the night before. Pour the bag of white rice in a gallon sealing plastic bag and add a few drops of green food coloring. Seal the bag, then toss and knead to distribute the color. (You may need to add more food coloring.) Allow to dry overnight on a baking sheet covered with foil or wax paper.

Note: Dyeing the rice is totally optional, but you will use it again in our upcoming Butterflies + Migration Unit!

Once your rice is ready, take your yarn and wrap it around your sensory bin or baking sheet to form a web. Don’t worry about making it too perfect—the point is for it to be challenging but not impossible.

Next, fill the bin with your green rice. This is your “grass.”

Add a few insect figurines.

Now, present your child with the bin and give them the plastic tweezers. Tell them they need to help rescue the bugs from the spider! Let them work those fine motor skills to free their insect friends and repeat as often as they want to play.

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Published by The Learn + Live Letter

The Learn + Live Letter is a play- and project-based homeschool curriculum for children ages 3-12.

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